According to the latest figures released today in Profile 2013: An Economic Report on the Screen-Based Production Industry in Canada, the Canadian film and television production industry showed a minor dip from 2011/12 to 2012/13, with an overall decrease in production volume of 0.8% to $5.82 billion.

Ottawa, January 29, 2014

Profile2013 marks the 17th edition of the annual economic report published by the Canadian Media Production Association (CMPA) in collaboration with the Association québécoise de la production médiatique (AQPM) and the Department of Canadian Heritage. The report provides a statistical overview of the three main screen-based production sectors in Canada: Canadian production (includes television and theatrical), foreign location & service production, and broadcaster in-house production. These sectors helped sustain 127,700 full-time jobs in 2012-2013.

After a sharp rise in 2011/12, total numbers for independent film and television production dropped to $2.67 billion. TV contributed greatest to the drop, down by 9.8% to $2.32 billion including a reduction in the number of shows produced from 693 in 2012 to 629 in 2013. Canadian theatrical feature film production, by contrast, increased by 3.2% to $351 million with the production of 93 films.

“In total, the numbers support the continuing quality and success of the Canadian production industry at home and internationally over the past ten years,” says Michael Hennessy, President and CEO, CMPA. “And it continues to be an industry that gives back. Canadian film and television production also generated $3.5 billion in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the Canadian economy including $1.4 billion in production-industry GDP and over $2 billion in spin-off GDP. However, because there was such a sharp decline last year in independent television production we need to determine the causes and find remedies for the decline.”

Foreign location & service production were up by 3.1% from 2011/12 levels to $1.74 billion. The fastest growth in 2012/13 came from the broadcaster in-house production sector, up 11.3% to an all time high of $1.41 billion.

For more information on the positive spin-off effects of the production industry in Canada, please view our video.

About the CMPA

The CMPA represents the interests of screen-based media companies engaged in the production and distribution of English-language television programs, feature films, and digital media content in all regions of Canada. Our over 350 member companies are significant employers of Canadian creative talent and assume the financial and creative risk of developing original content for Canadian and international audiences.